Digital Democracy

Participation is one of the most precious commodities in a democratic society. In the last years, the participation in democratic processes has shifted more and more to the internet. Nowadays petitions can easily be signed and political matters vividly discussed online. Voting however, being the most important kind of participation is still conducted analog with pen and paper.

Participation on the Internet

Now it is our request to digitalise participation. As a result, it is not just about political elections but there are more areas where democratic decisions are made: associations elect a board of directors, local authorities elect youth councils, corporations elect work councils, and cooperatives elect delegates and so on. Participation has a great significance in various areas for members, employees and citizens. We want to push aside obstacles of participation and thereby contribute to a democratisation of society.

Opportunities with Online Voting

Many people use the internet in daily life; get information about world events through online media outlets or debate in social networks. Nevertheless, there is still scepticism about online elections. We want to address these doubts openly and create transparency.

Easy Voting
Participating in an online election is an easy and time-saving experience for the voter: the vote can be casted online from anywhere in the world. That is why more voters can be reached and the voter turnout increases. In addition, more opportunities arise through online elections, in particular to encourage more people to vote: convenient communication via online channels so that a voting reminder can be sent out when the voter turnout stagnates. This is just one of several options which are available to the election responsibles.

Secure Online Voting
POLYAS works continuously on making our voting system more secure and transparent. Recently our online voting software POLYAS CORE 2.2.3 was certified after Common Criteria by the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI). Our research and development team also polishes up POLYAS Next Generation which will make a comprehensive verification possible.

Moreover, the election principles and the secrecy of the ballot are protected by POLYAS. The POLYAS system is spread out across Germany on different servers which are encrypted asynchronously. This way our elections are secret, equal, general, direct and free.

Facilitate Democratic Processes

Our goal is to facilitate carrying out democratic processes, to make the election management more efficient and make it easier for voters to participate. Also, the exchange of ideas is stimulated by an easy and secure possibility of participation which makes the whole election process more vivid. With online voting by POLYAS, the democracy comes to the voter – convenient and easy.